Concours Update

We are now only 53 SLEEPS away from our 2017 CJC “HEAD FOR THE MOUNTAINS” Concours, being held from July 13 to July 15th! Planning is finally complete! Particulars below:

ROOM AVAILABILITY:

Out of the 70 rooms at the Switzerland Inn, there are now only 9 rooms available! Diamondback Lodge has 7 beds available, as well! Please make sure to call them soon to reserve yours! We will be opening any remaining rooms up to the public in June.

REGISTRATION IS OPEN !

We have received 9 registrations thus far. Currently, we are accepting checks as payment, however we are working with CJC leaders on alternative payment methods. Payment must be made prior to entering your car for judging.

FRIDAY DRIVE EVENT:

Jerry Ellison has developed a wonderful drive to – and tour of – Penland School of Crafts (http://penland.org/ for Friday July 14th at 10:30am. The Tour takes about 1.5 hours and costs $5.34 per person at the door. This is over and above the amount charged on your registration for the Friday drive event.

Jerry will need to give them a number of how many will be attending at the end of June. They also said there is a limit to the number that they can accommodate on the Tour – up to 36-ish attendees — so this event will be limited to “First-Registered – First-Served“. He can also make arrangements for us to have them serve us a “fixed-price” “Box Lunch” in the Coffee Shop at the Gallery, and he will also check to see if we can also have Lunch in the School Cafeteria (which may be preferable – as it is only 13 miles/ 30min from the Penland School back to the Switzerland Inn – and some may prefer to go back to the Inn for Lunch – rather than eat at the School).

Jerry was told that there is some outside walking on “un-even” ground and not many places to sit down or rest – so this should be considered when signing up for the School Tour. But he has done this Tour a couple of time and it is a very interesting Tour and great fun and NOT that hard, or strenuous!!

Jerry has planned a “Scenic Route” Road-Trip -(all Route Maps & Driving Instructions will be provided) from the Switzerland Inn to the Penland School – which is reportedly 29 miles long and takes (reportedly)- 58 min. Leaving the Inn at 9 AM – we should reach the School at somewhere near 10 AM – and the Tour is scheduled for 10:30 AM. For those who are running late – there is a more direct Route which takes only 30 min & is only 13 miles -and Jerry will have some Maps and Route instructions available for those also).

For those who cannot make the Penland School Visit – Jerry also putting together a SEPARATE “Event” to BURNSVILLE – which will include a “Scenic Drive” -(all Maps and Driving Instructions included)-, and a selection of Art Studios & Galleries to visit in Burnsville & Micaville, & Celo, and a selection of “very neat” Restaurants in Burnsville !!

They will be sending him a little more information about the Penland School Tour, and he will let us know further about the Lunch options.

FRIDAY EVENING ENTERTAINMENT:

We have two ways for you to relax and enjoy your Friday after dinner.

First, Steve Thomas has introduced us to Joe Pepitone, an Automotive Portrait artist (check out www.pepitonecreativeservices.com/Auto/portfolio.html ). He has been featured in Hemmings Classic Car magazine, among others, and is well respected in the automotive industry. He will present to us “The Art of the Automobile”, and will last for about 45 minutes. I’m sure you will enjoy the discussion and visuals he’ll be sharing. His work is stunning.

After Joe’s presentation, we will be presenting an appropriately-themed movie for your viewing pleasure. No commercials! Popcorn will be available! Location for both of these will be dependent upon the weather.

The CONCOURS Itself – Saturday, July 15:

As in past years, the plan is to park the Judged cars on the grass behind the Restaurant, and the Display cars behind the Inn. Our Field Team will begin escorting cars to their appointed positions on Saturday at 08:00am. There will be no parking on the field prior to Saturday 8am. And all cars must be escorted – both Judged and Display.

Gregg and others before him have created such an excellent event that our Concours has become very popular to surrounding car clubs and enthusiasts. Because we are dedicated to the safety of our people, the Inn’s property, and our vehicles, and based upon our experiences over the past 3 years, we will be limiting the number of Judged vehicles on the grass field to 30 (same as last year), and the Display vehicles on the grass field to 10.

Overflow parking for Judged vehicles will be in the parking lot nearest the tennis court; overflow parking for Display vehicles will be in the parking lot nearest Geneva Hall. And as in years past, in the event of cloud-tears (r-a-i-n), we will resort to Plan B.

SILENT AUCTION:Once again, Jaime Lovello has volunteered to lead the Silent Auction, which is one of the most fun events all weekend! Jaime and team will set up the auction items in the Inn’s Great Room. Your mission? To bid on items you could not bear to leave without. Write your name and bid amount on the associated form, then come back multiple times to assure yours is the highest bid. Then after the Awards presentation, find out if you’ve won your selected items! Payments will again be accepted via cash, check or credit card. Also – why not do a little Spring cleaning and donate a few items to the cause? Contact Jaime if you can volunteer or if you have items to donate.

ASSISTANCE NEEDED:

We need your help. Putting on this event is a TEAM sport. We simply cannot make this work without YOU. When we say “you”, we literally mean EVERY ONE of YOU. Giving 2 hours of your 57 hours to help out should be a no-brainer. If every one gives some, no one is required to give all. Make it enjoyable for all by doing your part. Email us at CarolinaJagMan@carolina.rr.com today with your preference. Those highlighted in YELLOWare most critical at this writing.

Registration / Welcome Committee – short 2-hour shifts of 1-2 people each would be awesome.

Reminder that this is our main fund raising effort for our end-of-year donation to USO of NC

We try to keep the pricing reasonable for attendees

We look to our Sponsors and Advertisers, amongst others, to help offset costs

Cocktail party / drink sponsors

Jaguar South (Mark Lovello)

Silent Auction donations

Bill and Mary Sihler

Raffle sponsorship

We appreciate your continued interest and support of the Carolina Jaguar Club’s Annual Concours. The USO of North Carolina appreciates our yearly donation. And we all appreciate the ability to spend quality time with friends old and new, in a most wonderful location. Looking forward to when we Head to the Mountains!